Fantasy baseball: Short has become the answer for Detroit at shortstop

Jul. 28—Fantasy baseball team owners start with questions in the offseason.

That leads to questions in spring training, and throughout the year. We're always looking for answers so we can climb to the top of our league's standings and win the championship. Or at least finish in the money.

Let's focus on questions, and hope the answers help us capture the title.

—Who would have thought Zack Short would be Detroit's starting shortstop in July? Willi Castro owned the position at the start of the season, and even batted cleanup for the Tigers.

After struggling most of the year, Castro was sent to Triple-A Toledo on July 16 with a .214 batting average and six home runs. He had hit .349 over 36 games with Detroit in 2020.

Enter Short, who came to the Tigers from the Chicago Cubs in the Cameron Maybin deal last August. Short, a 26-year-old rookie, is hitting .183 through Tuesday, but has five homers and 13 RBIs in 30 games.

He has shown power in the minors so, if you've got an open spot for a middle infielder, Short is not a bad pickup.

And who would have thought Eric Haase would have double the homers of Miguel Cabrera?

—Had you heard of LaMonte Wade, Jr., before this season? He barely played the past two years with Minnesota, hitting .211 with two home runs in 42 games. The 27-year-old outfielder was traded to San Francisco in February, and was sent to Triple-A Sacramento.

Since being called up in late May, Wade has gotten regular playing time and is hitting .257 with 12 home runs and 27 RBIs. He has also stolen three bases without being caught.

His power is a surprise, but grab him while he's hot, though he suffered a leg injury on Tuesday night. Monitor his playing time, but put in a claim for him.

—Where are you in your league standings and, if it's near the top, do you own Miami's Jesus Aguilar and Adam Duvall? Those hitters have driven in nearly 40 percent of the Marlins' runs this season, combining for 39 homers and 140 RBIs.

No one saw that coming, but whether you drafted them or plucked them off your league's waiver wire, kudos to you. That being said, now is the time to trade them (if Miami doesn't trade them first).

Aguilar is coming off two bad seasons and can't be trusted. Duvall is a career .230 hitter and strikes out a ton. Get something for them now while their stock is high.

—Are you in the bottom half of your league's standings? If so, you probably had Milwaukee's Keston Hiura when the season began. How long did you hang on to him? After hitting .303 with 19 homers in 2019 with the Brewers, the former first round pick had been on a steep decline.

Hiura hit .212 in the shortened 2020 season, and was sent to the minors this year in early June after hitting .130 with one homer. He'll turn 25 years old next week, but he isn't worth being on any fantasy rosters this season.

He might be able to find his stroke and produce next year, but first-place Milwaukee won't be trying to straighten him out this season. Flush him, if you haven't already.

—Who would have thought George Springer, Blake Snell, and Francisco Lindor would have so little value this year? Because of injury (Toronto's Springer), inconsistency (San Diego's Snell), or both (New York Mets' Lindor), this trio hasn't helped our teams this year.

Springer is back, so keep him in your lineup; try to pick your spots with Snell; and Lindor won't be back from his oblique injury for a couple more weeks. Definitely plug him into your lineup when he returns, though he was hitting just .228 when he got hurt. Not the production we (and the Mets) were looking for on the investment.

—Is Daniel Lynch and Touki Toussaint still available on your league's waiver wire? Pick them up yesterday.

Lynch, a 24-year-old rookie left-hander with Kansas City, had an awful introduction to the majors in May when he gave up 14 earned runs over eight innings with a 15.75 ERA. Forget about that.

The Royals' No. 2 prospect on MLB Pipeline shut down the Tigers over eight innings on July 25, and should get a start against Toronto on Friday. That's not a great matchup but, if he does well, he should be in the majors to stay.

Toussaint, a first-round pick of Arizona in 2014, has mostly struggled in the MLB career with Atlanta, and has dealt with a strain in his throwing shoulder and testing positive for coronavirus last season.

The 25-year old right-hander has a 1.32 ERA in two starts in 2021, going 1-1 with 15 strikeouts and eight hits allowed over 13 2/3 innings. He will start on Friday against Milwaukee, so see if you can get him on your roster before then.